Reducing overhead associated with large-scale purchasing

ABSTRACT

A method of verifying a receiving of an item by a purchaser is disclosed. An indication that the purchaser agreed to purchase the item is received. A record is added to a purchase history associated with the purchaser, the record including a data item pertaining to the purchasing of the item. A notification that the purchaser has scanned information from a label on a package is received. It is determined that the package contains the item based on a correspondence between the data item and the information from the label. The record is updated to include verification data that the purchaser received the item.

CLAIM OF PRIORITY

This application is a continuation of prior application Ser. No.13/601,603, filed Aug. 31, 2012, which is hereby incorporated byreference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present application relates generally to the technical field ofinternet commerce, and, in one specific example, to enabling large-scalepurchasers to manage their purchasing more efficiently, particularlywith respect to their tracking of purchases received and their managingof disputes related to their purchases.

BACKGROUND

Various network-based publication systems (e.g., EBAY®, AMAZON®, orCRAIGSLIST®) may facilitate the buying or selling of items (e.g., goodsor services) by their users. Additionally, these systems may keep trackof and enable users to view or perform actions with respect to theirpast actions on these systems. For example, these systems may enable auser to view his purchase history. The purchase history may include alisting of items that the user has purchased (e.g., over a particularperiod of time, such as a month or year). Each record or entry in thelisting may include various information about a purchased item, such asa description, a purchase price, a date of purchase, information aboutthe seller (e.g., user name, feedback rating, and so on), a cost ofshipping for the item, and so on. Furthermore, each entry may beassociated with actions that the user can perform with respect to a pastpurchase, such as viewing a seller's other items, viewing similar listeditems, listing the purchased item for sale, contacting the seller, andso on. However, traditional methods of enabling users to view and manageactions associated with their past purchases may not take into accountvarious needs of large-scale buyers (e.g., a buyer who purchases asignificantly larger number of items in a given time period than atypical user).

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Some embodiments are illustrated by way of example and not limitation inthe figures of the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a network diagram depicting a client-server system withinwhich various example embodiments may be deployed;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating multiple applications includinglarge-scale buyer applications that, in various example embodiments, areprovided as part of the networked system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating example modules of thelarge-scale buyer applications of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example method of tracking thepurchasing and receiving of items offered for sale on the network-basedpublication system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example method of enabling apurchaser to make a single payment to pay for multiple items that thepurchaser has made agreements to purchase;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example method of enabling a buyerto use a stock-keeping unit (SKU) number to access a database recordcontaining information about a purchasing of an item;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example method of including anoptimization in a user-interface of the network-based publication systembased on a determination that a buyer is a large-scale buyer;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating an example method of notifying alarge-scale buyer of a deadline for opening a dispute against a sellerwith respect to one of a plurality of items that the buyer has agreed topurchase; and

FIG. 9 is a block diagram of machine in the example form of a computersystem within which instructions for causing the machine to perform anyone or more of the methodologies discussed herein may be executed.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerousspecific details are set forth in order to provide an understanding ofvarious embodiments of the present subject matter. It will be evident,however, to those skilled in the art that various embodiments may bepracticed without these specific details.

Consistent with various embodiments, a method of verifying a receivingof an item by a purchaser is disclosed. An indication that the purchaseragreed to purchase the item is received. A record is added to a purchasehistory associated with the purchaser, the record including a data itempertaining to the purchasing of the item. A notification that thepurchaser has scanned information from a label on a package is received.It is determined that the package contains the item based on acorrespondence between the data item and the information from the label.The record is updated to include verification data that the purchaserreceived the item.

This method and the various embodiments disclosed herein may beimplemented as a computer system having one or more modules (e.g.,hardware modules or software modules). This method and the variousembodiments disclosed herein may be embodied as instructions stored on amachine-readable medium that, when executed by a processor, cause theprocessor to perform the method.

FIG. 1 is a network diagram depicting a system 100 within which variousexample embodiments may be deployed. A networked system 102, in theexample forms of a network-based marketplace or other publicationsystem, provides server-side functionality, via a network 104 (e.g., theInternet or Wide Area Network (WAN)) to one or more clients. FIG. 1illustrates, for example, a web client 106 (e.g., a browser, such as theInternet Explorer browser developed by Microsoft Corporation of Redmond,Wash.) and a programmatic client 108 executing on respective clientmachines 110 and 112. Each of the one or more clients may include asoftware application module (e.g., a plug-in, add-in, or macro) thatadds a specific service or feature to a larger system. The softwareapplication module may be separate from but tightly-integrated into auser interface and functionality of a software application, such as aspreadsheet application. The software application may be a clientsoftware application executing on a client machine. The softwareapplication module may be optionally deployed in the same environment asthe software application such that the software application module canbe accessed from within the software application. The softwareapplication module may be optionally enabled or disabled within theenvironment (e.g., user interface) of the software application. Thesoftware application module may appear to be a part of the softwareapplication by, for example, providing user interface components orwidgets (e.g., menus, toolbars, menu commands, toolbar commands, and soon) that can be enabled, disabled, added to, or removed from standarduser interface components or widgets provided by the softwareapplication.

An API server 114 and a web server 116 are coupled to, and provideprogrammatic and web interfaces respectively to, one or more applicationservers 118. The application servers 118 host one or more application(s)120. The application servers 118 are, in turn, shown to be coupled toone or more database servers 124 that facilitate access to one or moreNoSQL or non-relational data stores or databases 126.

The marketplace applications 120 may provide a number of marketplacefunctions and services to users that access the networked system 102.While the applications 120 are shown in FIG. 1 to form part of thenetworked system 102, in alternative embodiments, the variousapplications 120 may form part of a service that is separate anddistinct from the networked system 102.

Further, while the system 100 shown in FIG. 1 employs a client-serverarchitecture, various embodiments are, of course, not limited to such anarchitecture, and could equally well find application in a distributed,or peer-to-peer, architecture system, for example. The variousapplications 120 could also be implemented as standalone softwareprograms, which do not necessarily have networking capabilities.Additionally, although FIG. 1 depicts machines 130, 110, and 112 asbeing coupled to a single networked system 102, it will be readilyapparent to one skilled in the art that machines 130, 110, and 112, aswell as applications 128, 106, and 108, may be coupled to multiplenetworked systems. For example, the application 128, 106, and 108 may becoupled to applications 120, such as payment applications associatedwith multiple payment processors (e.g., Visa, MasterCard, and AmericanExpress).

The web client 106 accesses the various applications 120 via the webinterface supported by the web server 116. Similarly, the programmaticclient 108 accesses the various services and functions provided by theapplications 120 via the programmatic interface provided by the APIserver 114. The programmatic client 108 may, for example, be a sellerapplication (e.g., the TurboLister application developed by eBay Inc.,of San Jose, Calif.) to enable sellers to author and manage listings onthe networked system 102 in an off-line manner, and to performbatch-mode communications between the programmatic client 108 and thenetworked system 102.

FIG. 1 also illustrates a third-party application 128, executing on athird-party server machine 130, as having programmatic access to thenetworked system 102 via the programmatic interface provided by the APIserver 114. For example, the third-party application 128 may, utilizinginformation retrieved from the networked system 102, support one or morefeatures or functions on a website hosted by the third party. Thethird-party website may, for example, provide one or more promotional,marketplace or payment functions that are supported by the relevantapplications of the networked system 102.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating multiple applications 120 that,in various example embodiments, are provided as part of the networkedsystem 102. The applications 120 may be hosted on dedicated or sharedserver machines (not shown) that are communicatively coupled to enablecommunications between server machines. The applications 120 themselvesare communicatively coupled (e.g., via appropriate interfaces) to eachother and to various data sources, so as to allow information to bepassed between the applications 120 so as to allow the applications 120to share and access common data. The applications 120 may furthermoreaccess one or more databases 126 via the database servers 124.

The networked system 102 may provide a number of publishing, listing andprice-setting mechanisms whereby a seller may list (or publishinformation concerning) goods or services for sale, a buyer can expressinterest in or indicate a desire to purchase such goods or services, anda price can be set for a transaction pertaining to the goods orservices. To this end, the marketplace applications 120 are shown toinclude at least one publication application 200 and one or more auctionapplications 202 which support auction-format listing and price settingmechanisms (e.g., English, Dutch, Vickrey, Chinese, Double, Reverseauctions etc.). The various auction applications 202 may also provide anumber of features in support of such auction-format listings, such as areserve price feature whereby a seller may specify a reserve price inconnection with a listing and a proxy-bidding feature whereby a biddermay invoke automated proxy bidding.

A number of fixed-price applications 204 support fixed-price listingformats (e.g., the traditional classified advertisement-type listing ora catalogue listing) and buyout-type listings. Specifically, buyout-typelistings (e.g., including the Buy-It-Now (BIN) technology developed byeBay Inc., of San Jose, Calif.) may be offered in conjunction withauction-format listings, and allow a buyer to purchase goods orservices, which are also being offered for sale via an auction, for afixed-price that is typically higher than the starting price of theauction.

Store applications 206 allow a seller to group listings within a“virtual” store, which may be branded and otherwise personalized by andfor the seller. Such a virtual store may also offer promotions,incentives and features that are specific and personalized to a relevantseller.

Reputation applications 208 allow users that transact, utilizing thenetworked system 102, to establish, build and maintain reputations,which may be made available and published to potential trading partners.Consider that where, for example, the networked system 102 supportsperson-to-person trading, users may otherwise have no history or otherreference information whereby the trustworthiness and credibility ofpotential trading partners may be assessed. The reputation applications208 allow a user (for example through feedback provided by othertransaction partners) to establish a reputation within the networkedsystem 102 over time. Other potential trading partners may thenreference such a reputation for the purposes of assessing credibilityand trustworthiness.

Personalization applications 210 allow users of the networked system 102to personalize various aspects of their interactions with the networkedsystem 102. For example a user may, utilizing an appropriatepersonalization application 210, create a personalized reference page atwhich information regarding transactions to which the user is (or hasbeen) a party may be viewed. Further, a personalization application 210may enable a user to personalize listings and other aspects of theirinteractions with the networked system 102 and other parties.

The networked system 102 may support a number of marketplaces that arecustomized, for example, for specific geographic regions. A version ofthe networked system 102 may be customized for the United Kingdom,whereas another version of the networked system 102 may be customizedfor the United States. Each of these versions may operate as anindependent marketplace, or may be customized (or internationalized)presentations of a common underlying marketplace. The networked system102 may accordingly include a number of internationalizationapplications 212 that customize information (and/or the presentation ofinformation) by the networked system 102 according to predeterminedcriteria (e.g., geographic, demographic or marketplace criteria). Forexample, the internationalization applications 212 may be used tosupport the customization of information for a number of regionalwebsites that are operated by the networked system 102 and that areaccessible via respective web servers 116.

Navigation of the networked system 102 may be facilitated by one or morenavigation applications 214. For example, a search application (as anexample of a navigation application) may enable keyword searches oflistings published via the networked system 102. A browse applicationmay allow users to browse various category, catalogue, or inventory datastructures according to which listings may be classified within thenetworked system 102. Various other navigation applications may beprovided to supplement the search and browsing applications.

In order to make listings available via the networked system 102 asvisually informing and attractive as possible, the marketplaceapplications 120 may include one or more imaging applications 216, whichusers may utilize to upload images for inclusion within listings. Animaging application 216 also operates to incorporate images withinviewed listings. The imaging applications 216 may also support one ormore promotional features, such as image galleries that are presented topotential buyers. For example, sellers may pay an additional fee to havean image included within a gallery of images for promoted items.

Listing creation applications 218 allow sellers to conveniently authorlistings pertaining to goods or services that they wish to transact viathe networked system 102, and listing management applications 220 allowsellers to manage such listings. Specifically, where a particular sellerhas authored and/or published a large number of listings, the managementof such listings may present a challenge. The listing managementapplications 220 provide a number of features (e.g., auto-relisting,inventory level monitors, etc.) to assist the seller in managing suchlistings. The listing creation application 218 and listing managementapplications 220 may allow sellers to manage listing in bulk (e.g., in asingle operation, such as by an uploading of a file) and providetemplates for sellers to manage category-specific, vendor-specific, orgeneral-type-specific (e.g., catalog or ticket) listings. One or morepost-listing management applications 222 also assist sellers with anumber of activities that typically occur post-listing. For example,upon completion of an auction facilitated by one or more auctionapplications 202, a seller may wish to leave feedback regarding aparticular buyer. To this end, a post-listing management application 222may provide an interface to one or more reputation applications 208, soas to allow the seller to conveniently provide feedback regardingmultiple buyers to the reputation applications 208.

Dispute resolution applications 224 provide mechanisms whereby disputesarising between transacting parties may be resolved. For example, thedispute resolution applications 224 may provide guided procedureswhereby the parties are guided through a number of operations in anattempt to settle a dispute. In the event that the dispute cannot besettled via the guided procedures, the dispute may be escalated to athird-party mediator or arbitrator.

A number of fraud prevention applications 226 implement fraud detectionand prevention mechanisms to reduce the occurrence of fraud within thenetworked system 102.

Messaging applications 228 are responsible for the generation anddelivery of messages to users of the networked system 102. Thesemessages may, for example, advise users regarding the status of listingsat the networked system 102 (e.g., providing “outbid” notices to biddersduring an auction process or providing promotional and merchandisinginformation to users). Respective messaging applications 228 may utilizeany one of a number of message delivery networks and platforms todeliver messages to users. For example, messaging applications 228 maydeliver electronic mail (e-mail), instant message (Dvi), Short MessageService (SMS), text, facsimile, or voice (e.g., Voice over IP (VoIP))messages via the wired (e.g., the Internet), Plain Old Telephone Service(POTS), or wireless (e.g., mobile, cellular, WiFi, WiMAX) networks.

Merchandising applications 230 support various merchandising functionsthat are made available to sellers to enable sellers to increase salesvia the networked system 102. The merchandising applications 230 alsooperate the various merchandising features that may be invoked bysellers, and may monitor and track the success of merchandisingstrategies employed by sellers.

The networked system 102 itself, or one or more parties that transactvia the networked system 102, may operate loyalty programs that aresupported by one or more loyalty/promotion applications 232. Forexample, a buyer may earn loyalty or promotions points for eachtransaction established and/or concluded with a particular seller, andmay be offered a reward for which accumulated loyalty points can beredeemed.

Large-scale buyer applications 234, described in more detail below, mayenable purchasers of large numbers of items (e.g., significantly moreitems than a typical purchaser) to manage their purchases with as littleoverhead as possible. For example, the large-scale buyer applications234 may provide such large-scale purchasers with tools that are notavailable to the typical buyer that, for example, make it easier for thelarge-scale purchasers to efficiently track their purchases or manageactions associated with their purchases.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating example modules of thelarge-scale buyer applications 234. A purchase-detection module 302 maybe configured detect that a buyer has agreed to purchase an item (e.g.,via the system 100). A database-updating module 304 may be configured toupdate a record in a database maintained by the networked system 102based on, for example, the detecting of the purchasing of the item bythe buyer, a detecting of a receiving by the buyer of a packagecontaining the item, or other inputs. A package-reception module 306 maybe configured to detect that a buyer has received a package containingan item that the buyer agreed to purchase. A stock-keeping unit (SKU)association module 308 may be configured to associate a SKU (e.g., asspecified by the buyer) with the item. An action-proposal module 310 maybe configured to propose various actions for a buyer with regard toitems purchased or ordered (e.g., notify the buyer of deadlinespertaining to the opening of a dispute with respect to a purchased itemor notify the buyer to follow up with a seller from which an ordereditem has not been received within a particular time period). Apayment-aggregation module 312 that is configured to aggregate paymentsfor multiple items (e.g., from multiple sellers) that the buyer hasagreed to purchase. A user-interface-presentation module 314 may beconfigured to select or present a user interface for the buyer (e.g.,based on whether the buyer is a large-scale buyer or a typical buyer). Alarge-scale-buyer-detection module 316 may be configured to detectwhether a buyer is a large-scale buyer (e.g., a buyer that purchases asignificantly larger number of items than a typical buyer).

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example method 400 of tracking thepurchasing and receiving of items offered for sale on the networkedsystem 102. Various operations of the method 400 may be performed by thelarge-scale buyer applications 234. At operation 402, thepurchase-detection module 302 detects that a purchaser has agreed topurchase an item. For example, the purchase-detection module 302 detectsthat the purchaser has entered a winning bid for the item in an auctionon the networked system 102. Or the purchase-detection module 302detects that the purchaser has agreed to pay a price for the item that aseller offered for an immediate (“Buy-It-Now”) purchase of the item.

At operation 404, the database-updating module 304 adds a record to apurchase history associated with the purchaser that corresponds to theagreed-upon purchase. The record includes a data item pertaining to thepurchasing of the item, such as an item number generated by the selleror the networked system 102.

At operation 406, the package-reception module 306 receives anotification that the purchaser has scanned information from a label ona package that the purchaser has received. The notification may includeinformation contained on the label, such as the item number of an itemcontained in the package.

At operation 408, the package-reception module 306 determines that thepackage contains the item based on a correspondence between the dataitem and the information from the label. In various embodiments, thelabel may be generated by the networked system 102 and affixed onto apackage containing the item by the seller of the item.

At operation 410, the database-updating module 304 updates the record toinclude a verification that the purchaser received the item. In thisway, a large-scale purchaser, who potentially receives hundreds orthousands of packages per day, may access a purchase history (e.g.,purchase records in one of database(s) 126 of the networked system 102)to easily perform a periodic (e.g., daily) reconciliation of itemsordered versus items received.

For example, the user-interface presentation module 314 may presentinformation regarding items ordered versus items received (e.g., over atime period) such that the purchaser may quickly determine whichpackages have not yet been received from various sellers. And, invarious embodiments, because the determination of whether an item isreceived is based on a scanning of a label on a package containing theitem, the purchaser may perform the reconciliation without opening anypackages. Furthermore, the user-interface presentation module 314 maypresent a user interface that enables the purchaser to quickly follow upwith particular sellers regarding missing items or even open disputeswith the sellers (e.g., via the dispute resolution application(s) 224).In various embodiments, when an item is not received by the purchaserwithin a predetermined time period (e.g., as specified by the purchaserin a profile he maintains with respect to the networked system 102), theaction-proposal module 310 may propose that the purchaser contact theseller or, based on various factors (e.g., on the tardiness of theshipping of the item from the seller, the seller's reputation, and soon), open a dispute with the seller. The action-proposal module 310 mayenable (e.g., via the user-interface presentation module 314) thepurchaser to choose one of the proposed actions and then, in response,implement the action (e.g., by interfacing with the applications 120).Thus the purchaser may take immediate actions with respect toagreed-upon purchases at the moment such actions are proposed or deemednecessary by the networked system 102.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example method 500 of enabling apurchaser to make a single payment to pay for multiple items that thepurchaser has made agreements to purchase (e.g., based on the time thatelapses between the agreements). Various operations of the method 500may be performed by the large-scale buyer applications 234.

At operation 502, the purchase-detection module 302 receives anindication that a purchaser has agreed to purchase an item. At operation504, the purchase-detection module 302 receives an indication that thebuyer has agreed to buy an additional item.

At operation 506, the payment-aggregation module 312 aggregates orconsolidates the payments for the item and the additional item into asingle payment. The payment-aggregation module 312 may perform theaggregation based on, for example, a length of time that elapses betweenwhen the purchaser agrees to purchase the first item and when thepurchaser agrees to purchase the second item. That is, thepayment-aggregation module 312 may aggregate the payments if the lengthof time between the agreements does not transgress a threshold length oftime. Or the payment-aggregation module 312 may, at a predetermined timeor periodic interval of time (e.g., at 5:00 pm on weekdays), aggregatepayments for agreements that the purchaser has made for which thepurchaser has not yet made payments into a single payment. Thepayment-aggregation module 312 may then distribute the appropriateportions of the single payment to the appropriate sellers of each itemto which the single payment is directed.

The payments may be aggregated regardless of whether the seller of eachitem for which a payment is to be made are different sellers or the sameseller. The user-interface-presentation module 314 may generate a userinterface that lists all outstanding payments and enables the purchaserto select which payments are to be consolidated into a single payment.The user-interface-presentation module 314 may also enable the purchaserto configure groups of payments for outstanding purchases (e.g., howmany groups of payments to make, which payments should be included ineach group, or when a single payment for each group of payments shouldbe made). Thus, the large-scale buyer applications 234 may enable apurchaser to, rather than attempt to manage making many (e.g., hundredsor thousands of payments) to each individual seller of items that thepurchaser has agreed to purchase, make as little as a single payment tocover all of the agreements. Thus, a large-scale purchaser need notdevote as many workers or other resources to managing payments.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example method 600 of enabling abuyer to use a stock-keeping unit (SKU) number to access a databaserecord containing information about a purchase of an item with which thebuyer associates the SKU. Various operations of the method 600 may beperformed by the large-scale buyer applications 234. At operation 602,the package-reception module 306 determines that the buyer has receiveda package associated with an item that the buyer agreed to purchase viathe networked system 102. For example, the package-reception module 306may perform the steps described above with respect to FIG. 4. In variousembodiments, the database record may include an item number for theitem. The item number may be generated by the seller of the item (e.g.,a 12-digit item number that appears on the invoice from the seller) orthe networked system 102 and thus may not be particularly meaningful tothe buyer.

At operation 604, the SKU-association module 308 provides the buyer withan option to associate the item with a SKU. For example, when the userscans a label on a package containing the item from a mobile device, theSKU-association module 308 may generate a user interface forpresentation on the mobile device that prompts the user to enter a SKUfor the item. The SKU may be a number that is proprietary to the buyerand thus not have any particular meaning to the seller or the networkedsystem 102

At operation 606, the database-updating module 304 updates a record in adatabase to include the SKU. For example, the database-updating module304 may update a record corresponding to the purchase history of thebuyer (and maintained with respect to the networked system 102) toinclude the SKU specified by the buyer.

At operation 608, the user-interface-presentation module 314 maygenerate a user interface that enables the user (e.g., a buyer) toaccess a database record by specifying the SKU. For example, theuser-interface-presentation module 314 may generate a user interfacethat includes a search box for searching for an item in a purchasehistory of the buyer. When the user enters the SKU in the search box,the SKU-association module 308 may identify the item corresponding tothe SKU. The user-interface-presentation module 314 may then presentinformation contained in the database record corresponding to the itemto which the SKU has been linked.

By enabling buyers to associate such SKUs with items that they agree viathe networked system 102 to purchase or receive, the large-scale buyerapplications 234 make it easier for buyers to track their packages.Instead of having to learn to use item numbers or other identificationdata that is associated with items by the sellers or the networkedsystem 102, buyers can use their own item identification data. Thus, thelarge-scale buyer applications 234 effectively enable buyers tosynchronize database records stored on the networked system 102 withtheir own internal systems or record-keeping processes, and then accessthose database records using their own proprietary data.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example method 700 of including anoptimization in a user-interface of the network-based publication systembased on a determination that a buyer is a large-scale buyer. Variousoperations of the method 700 may be performed by the large-scale buyerapplications 234. At operation 702, the user-interface presentationmodule 314 determines that a buyer has submitted a request to access adatabase that includes information about purchases that the buyer hasagreed to make. For example, the user-interface presentation module 314determines that the buyer wishes to view a history of the purchases hehas made via the networked system 102 (e.g., by clicking on a “purchasehistory” link on a user interface presented by the networked system102).

At operation 704, the large-scale-buyer-detection module 316 identifiesthe buyer as a large-scale buyer. For example, thelarge-scale-buyer-detection module 316 determines that the buyer has anaverage number of purchases over a time period (e.g., a day) that ismore than an average number of purchases over the time period by atypical buyer. The large-scale-buyer-detection module 316 may determinethat a number of records in a database corresponding to purchases madeby the buyer over a time period has exceeded a number of records forwhich the user-interface-presentation module 314 can present informationefficiently to the buyer via a particular user interface screen. Forexample, the large-scale-buyer-detection module 316 may determine thatthe buyer has made 25,000 purchases in the last six months and that theparticular user interface screen (e.g., an HTML page) that is generatedto display information about those purchases cannot be loaded by thebuyer without the buyer experiencing significant delays while loadingthe user interface screen (e.g., a delay that exceeds a predeterminedthreshold determined by an administrator of the networked system 102 ora delay that is specified by the buyer in profile or preference datamaintained by the buyer with respect to the networked system 102). Thus,the large-scale-buyer-detection module 316 may base the determination ofwhether a buyer is a large-scale buyer on performance metrics associatedwith the buyer's accessing of information maintained by the networkedsystem 102 that pertains to items that the buyer has agreed to purchase.

At operation 706, the user-interface-presentation module 314 providesthe buyer with access to the database via a user interface that includesan optimization for large-scale buyers. In various embodiments, theoptimization is not particularly suited for typical buyers. For example,instead of presenting information pertaining to all of the purchases ofthe buyer over a time frame specified by the buyer in a single list, theuser interface may separate the information about the purchases intoseveral navigable pages within the user interface. Or, instead ofpresenting substantially all of the data pertaining to each item in thecorresponding list, the user interface may present a summary of the datapertaining to the items such that less information about the items isinitially conveyed to the buyer but the page containing the data can beloaded by the buyer more quickly. Or, the user interface may include asearch query box or other searching tools to enable the user to searchthrough all of the items in the list instead of having to browse throughall of the items included in the list. Or the user interface may includesearch boxes corresponding to one or more of the fields, such as thetitle or description fields, included in the database records maintainedby the networked system 102 that pertain to purchases that the buyer hasagreed to make.

Thus, the large-scale buyer applications 234 may provide user interfaceenhancements that make it easier for large-scale buyers to quicklyaccess the information they are seeking from database records maintainedby the networked system 102, such as records that match particularqueries entered by the large-scale buyer with respect to purchases thatthe buyer has agreed to make. Such user interface enhancements may be adistraction to a typical buyer or may be features that a typical buyerwould have very little use for (e.g., based on the typical buyer havingfar fewer purchases to track over particular time periods than alarge-scale buyer).

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating an example method 800 of notifying alarge-scale buyer of a deadline for opening a dispute against a sellerwith respect to one of a plurality of items that the buyer has agreed topurchase. At operation 802, the large-scale-buyer-detection module 316determines that the buyer has a large number of items that are eligiblefor opening of disputes by the buyer against the sellers of the items.For example, the large-scale-buyer-detection module 316 determines thatthe buyer is a large-scale buyer.

At operation 804, the action-proposal module 310 identifies that adeadline for opening one of the disputes is approaching. For example, ifthe buyer made a payment for the item using a particular paymentprocessing system (e.g., a credit card), the action-proposal module 310may determine that the deadline is approaching based on an analysis ofthe purchase-agreement date, a deadline specified in a policy of thepayment processing system, and the current date. For example, if thedeadline for opening a dispute with the payment processor is within atime period specified by the buyer in preference data or by anadministrator of the networked system 102 (e.g., one week), theaction-proposal module 310 may determine that the deadline is imminent.

At operation 806, the action-proposal module 310 may send a notificationof the deadline to the buyer. The notification may include an option forthe buyer to take an action with respect to the notification (e.g., opena dispute with a payment processor that the buyer used to complete thetransaction or another entity, such as the networked system 102, thatgoverns fraud associated with the transaction). Theuser-interface-presentation module 314 may generate a user interfacethat includes dispute information pertaining to all or a subset of theitems that the buyer has agreed to purchase or for which the buyer hasmade a payment, including actions that the user may make with respect tothe dispute process (e.g., opening a dispute, closing a dispute,replying to statements made by the seller, and so on). The userinterface may include a summary of the status of the dispute resolutionprocess for each item, such as the information about items for which thedispute resolution is available (e.g., for which the final deadline foropening a dispute has not passed), information about items for which thedispute resolution process is no longer available, or information aboutitems for which the dispute resolution is in progress (e.g., when thedispute was opened, when a next action must be taken, and so on).

The user interface may sort items for which the dispute resolutionprocess is still available by the number of days until a deadline bywhich an action must be taken to open the dispute, escalate the dispute,respond to a seller, or otherwise keep the dispute alive. Thus, thelarge-scale buyer applications 234 may not only enable buyers tounderstand their rights with respect to each purchase that they havemade, but also enable the buyers to take appropriate actions at theappropriate times to protect those rights. The user interface fornotifying the buyers of upcoming deadlines related to dispute resolutionmay be tightly integrated with the dispute resolution application(s) 224described above.

Certain embodiments are described herein as including logic or a numberof components, modules, or mechanisms. Modules may constitute eithersoftware modules (e.g., code embodied on a machine-readable medium or ina transmission signal) or hardware modules. A hardware module is atangible unit capable of performing certain operations and may beconfigured or arranged in a certain manner. In example embodiments, oneor more computer systems (e.g., a standalone, client or server computersystem) or one or more hardware modules of a computer system (e.g., aprocessor or a group of processors) may be configured by software (e.g.,an application or application portion) as a hardware module thatoperates to perform certain operations as described herein.

In various embodiments, a hardware module may be implementedmechanically or electronically. For example, a hardware module maycomprise dedicated circuitry or logic that is permanently configured(e.g., as a special-purpose processor, such as a field programmable gatearray (FPGA) or an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC)) toperform certain operations. A hardware module may also compriseprogrammable logic or circuitry (e.g., as encompassed within ageneral-purpose processor or other programmable processor) that istemporarily configured by software to perform certain operations. Itwill be appreciated that the decision to implement a hardware modulemechanically, in dedicated and permanently configured circuitry, or intemporarily configured circuitry (e.g., configured by software) may bedriven by cost and time considerations.

Accordingly, the term “hardware module” should be understood toencompass a tangible entity, be that an entity that is physicallyconstructed, permanently configured (e.g., hardwired) or temporarilyconfigured (e.g., programmed) to operate in a certain manner and/or toperform certain operations described herein. Considering embodiments inwhich hardware modules are temporarily configured (e.g., programmed),each of the hardware modules need not be configured or instantiated atany one instance in time. For example, where the hardware modulescomprise a general-purpose processor configured using software, thegeneral-purpose processor may be configured as respective differenthardware modules at different times. Software may accordingly configurea processor, for example, to constitute a particular hardware module atone instance of time and to constitute a different hardware module at adifferent instance of time.

Hardware modules can provide information to, and receive informationfrom, other hardware modules. Accordingly, the described hardwaremodules may be regarded as being communicatively coupled. Where multipleof such hardware modules exist contemporaneously, communications may beachieved through signal transmission (e.g., over appropriate circuitsand buses) that connect the hardware modules. In embodiments in whichmultiple hardware modules are configured or instantiated at differenttimes, communications between such hardware modules may be achieved, forexample, through the storage and retrieval of information in memorystructures to which the multiple hardware modules have access. Forexample, one hardware module may perform an operation and store theoutput of that operation in a memory device to which it iscommunicatively coupled. A further hardware module may then, at a latertime, access the memory device to retrieve and process the storedoutput. Hardware modules may also initiate communications with input oroutput devices and can operate on a resource (e.g., a collection ofinformation).

The various operations of example methods described herein may beperformed, at least partially, by one or more processors that aretemporarily configured (e.g., by software) or permanently configured toperform the relevant operations. Whether temporarily or permanentlyconfigured, such processors may constitute processor-implemented modulesthat operate to perform one or more operations or functions. The modulesreferred to herein may, in some example embodiments, compriseprocessor-implemented modules.

Similarly, the methods described herein may be at least partiallyprocessor-implemented. For example, at least some of the operations of amethod may be performed by one or more processors orprocessor-implemented modules. The performance of certain of theoperations may be distributed among the one or more processors, not onlyresiding within a single machine, but deployed across a number ofmachines. In some example embodiments, the processor or processors maybe located in a single location (e.g., within a home environment, anoffice environment or as a server farm), while in other embodiments theprocessors may be distributed across a number of locations.

The one or more processors may also operate to support performance ofthe relevant operations in a “cloud computing” environment or as a“software as a service” (SaaS). For example, at least some of theoperations may be performed by a group of computers (as examples ofmachines including processors), these operations being accessible via anetwork (e.g., the network 104 of FIG. 1) and via one or moreappropriate interfaces (e.g., APIs).

Example embodiments may be implemented in digital electronic circuitry,or in computer hardware, firmware, software, or in combinations of them.Example embodiments may be implemented using a computer program product,e.g., a computer program tangibly embodied in an information carrier,e.g., in a machine-readable medium for execution by, or to control theoperation of, data processing apparatus, e.g., a programmable processor,a computer, or multiple computers.

A computer program can be written in any form of programming language,including compiled or interpreted languages, and it can be deployed inany form, including as a stand-alone program or as a module, subroutine,or other unit suitable for use in a computing environment. A computerprogram can be deployed to be executed on one computer or on multiplecomputers at one site or distributed across multiple sites andinterconnected by a communication network.

In example embodiments, operations may be performed by one or moreprogrammable processors executing a computer program to performfunctions by operating on input data and generating output. Methodoperations can also be performed by, and apparatus of exampleembodiments may be implemented as, special purpose logic circuitry (e.FPGA or an ASIC).

The computing system can include clients and servers. A client andserver are generally remote from each other and typically interactthrough a communication network. The relationship of client and serverarises by virtue of computer programs running on the respectivecomputers and having a client-server relationship to each other. Inembodiments deploying a programmable computing system, it will beappreciated that both hardware and software architectures requireconsideration. Specifically, it will be appreciated that the choice ofwhether to implement certain functionality in permanently configuredhardware (e.g., an ASIC), in temporarily configured hardware (e.g., acombination of software and a programmable processor), or a combinationof permanently and temporarily configured hardware may be a designchoice. Below are set out hardware (e.g., machine) and softwarearchitectures that may be deployed, in various example embodiments.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram of machine in the example form of a computersystem 1800 within which instructions for causing the machine to performany one or more of the methodologies discussed herein may be executed.In alternative embodiments, the machine operates as a standalone deviceor may be connected (e.g., networked) to other machines. In a networkeddeployment, the machine may operate in the capacity of a server or aclient machine in server-client network environment, or as a peermachine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment. Themachine may be a personal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a set-top box(STB), a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a cellular telephone, a webappliance, a network router, switch or bridge, or any machine capable ofexecuting instructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify actions tobe taken by that machine. Further, while only a single machine isillustrated, the term “machine” shall also be taken to include anycollection of machines that individually or jointly execute a set (ormultiple sets) of instructions to perform any one or more of themethodologies discussed herein.

The example computer system 1800 includes a processor 1802 (e.g., acentral processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU) orboth), a main memory 1804 and a static memory 1806, which communicatewith each other via a bus 1808. The computer system 1800 may furtherinclude a video display unit 1810 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD)or a cathode ray tube (CRT)). The computer system 1800 also includes analphanumeric input device 1812 (e.g., a keyboard), a user interface (UI)navigation (or cursor control) device 1814 (e.g., a mouse), a storageunit 1816, a signal generation device 1818 (e.g., a speaker) and anetwork interface device 1820.

The storage unit 1816 includes a machine-readable medium 1822 on whichis stored one or more sets of data structures and instructions 1824(e.g., software) embodying or utilized by any one or more of themethodologies or functions described herein. The instructions 1824 mayalso reside, completely or at least partially, within the main memory1804 and/or within the processor 1802 during execution thereof by thecomputer system 1800, the main memory 1804 and the processor 1802 alsoconstituting machine-readable media. The instructions 1824 may alsoreside, completely or at least partially, within the static memory 1806.

While the machine-readable medium 1822 is shown in an example embodimentto be a single medium, the term “machine-readable medium” may include asingle medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributeddatabase, and/or associated caches and servers) that store the one ormore instructions 1824 or data structures. The term “machine-readablemedium” shall also be taken to include any tangible medium that iscapable of storing, encoding or carrying instructions for execution bythe machine and that cause the machine to perform any one or more of themethodologies of the present embodiments, or that is capable of storing,encoding or carrying data structures utilized by or associated with suchinstructions. The term “machine-readable medium” shall accordingly betaken to include, but not be limited to, solid-state memories, andoptical and magnetic media. Specific examples of machine-readable mediainclude non-volatile memory, including by way of example semiconductormemory devices, e.g., Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory (EPROM),Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory (EEPROM), and flashmemory devices; magnetic disks such as internal hard disks and removabledisks; magneto-optical disks; and compact disc-read-only memory (CD-ROM)and digital versatile disc (or digital video disc) read-only memory(DVD-ROM) disks.

The instructions 1824 may further be transmitted or received over acommunications network 1826 using a transmission medium. Theinstructions 1824 may be transmitted using the network interface device1820 and any one of a number of well-known transfer protocols (e.g.,HTTP). Examples of communication networks include a LAN, a WAN, theInternet, mobile telephone networks, POTS networks, and wireless datanetworks (e.g., WiFi and WiMax networks). The term “transmission medium”shall be taken to include any intangible medium capable of storing,encoding or carrying instructions for execution by the machine, andincludes digital or analog communications signals or other intangiblemedia to facilitate communication of such software. The network 1826 maybe one of the networks 104.

Although an embodiment has been described with reference to specificexample embodiments, it will be evident that various modifications andchanges may be made to these embodiments without departing from thebroader spirit and scope of the present disclosure. Accordingly, thespecification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative ratherthan a restrictive sense. The accompanying drawings that form a parthereof, show by way of illustration, and not of limitation, specificembodiments in which the subject matter may be practiced. Theembodiments illustrated are described in sufficient detail to enablethose skilled in the art to practice the teachings disclosed herein.Other embodiments may be utilized and derived therefrom, such thatstructural and logical substitutions and changes may be made withoutdeparting from the scope of this disclosure. This Detailed Description,therefore, is not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope ofvarious embodiments is defined only by the appended claims, along withthe full range of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.

Such embodiments of the inventive subject matter may be referred toherein, individually and/or collectively, by the term “invention” merelyfor convenience and without intending to voluntarily limit the scope ofthis application to any single invention or inventive concept if morethan one is in fact disclosed. Thus, although specific embodiments havebeen illustrated and described herein, it should be appreciated that anyarrangement calculated to achieve the same purpose may be substitutedfor the specific embodiments shown. This disclosure is intended to coverany and all adaptations or variations of various embodiments.Combinations of the above embodiments, and other embodiments notspecifically described herein, will be apparent to those of skill in theart upon reviewing the above description.

1. (canceled)
 2. A system comprising: one or more computer processors;one or more computer memories; one or more modules incorporated into theone or more computer memories, the one or more modules configuring theone or more computer processors to perform operations for selecting auser interface of an electronic marketplace for presentation to apurchaser, the operations including: receiving an indication that thepurchaser has agreed to purchase a first item, the first item being soldby a first seller; receiving an indication that the purchaser has agreedto purchase a second item, the second item being sold by a secondseller; and based on a detection that the purchaser is a large-scalepurchaser, performing the selecting of the user interface, the userinterface providing the purchaser with an option to perform a firstproposed action and a second proposed action, the first proposed actioncorresponding to the agreement to purchase the first item and the secondproposed action corresponding to the agreement to purchase the seconditem.
 3. The system of claim 2, wherein the first proposed actionincludes consolidating a payment associated with the agreement topurchase the first item with a payment associated with the agreement topurchase the second item.
 4. The system of claim 2, further comprisingdetermining that a deadline for opening a dispute with the first selleris imminent and the first proposed action includes opening the disputewith the first seller before the deadline.
 5. The system of claim 4,wherein the first proposed action is further based on a tardiness of ashipping of the first item and a reputation of the first seller.
 6. Thesystem of claim 4, the operations further comprising detecting that adeadline for taking a next action associated with the dispute isapproaching, and wherein the user interface is updated to include athird proposed action, the third proposed action including performingthe next action before the deadline.
 7. The system of claim 2, whereinthe first proposed action includes contacting the first seller insteadof opening a dispute based on a tardiness of a shipping of the firstitem or a reputation of the seller.
 8. The system of claim 2, whereinthe detection that the purchaser is the large-scale purchaser is basedon a number of items purchased by the purchaser exceeding a thresholdnumber over a time period.
 9. A method comprising: incorporating or moremodules into the one or more computer memories, the one or more modulesconfiguring the one or more computer processors to perform operationsfor selecting a user interface of an electronic marketplace forpresentation to a purchaser, the operations including: receiving anindication that the purchaser has agreed to purchase a first item, thefirst item being sold by a first seller; receiving an indication thatthe purchaser has agreed to purchase a second item, the second itembeing sold by a second seller; and based on a detection that thepurchaser is a large-scale purchaser, performing the selecting of theuser interface, the user interface providing the purchaser with anoption to perform a first proposed action and a second proposed action,the first proposed action corresponding to the agreement to purchase thefirst item and the second proposed action corresponding to the agreementto purchase the second item.
 10. The method of claim 9, wherein thefirst proposed action includes consolidating a payment associated withthe agreement to purchase the first item with a payment associated withthe agreement to purchase the second item.
 11. The method of claim 9,the operations further comprising determining that a deadline foropening a dispute with the first seller is imminent and the firstproposed action includes opening the dispute with the first sellerbefore the deadline.
 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the firstproposed action is further based on a tardiness of a shipping of thefirst item and a reputation of the first seller.
 13. The method of claim11, the operations further comprising detecting that a deadline fortaking a next action associated with the dispute is approaching, andwherein the user interface is updated to include a third proposedaction, the third proposed action including performing the next actionbefore the deadline.
 14. The method of claim 9, wherein the firstproposed action includes contacting the first seller instead of openinga dispute based on a tardiness of a shipping of the first item or areputation of the seller.
 15. method of claim 9, wherein the detectionthat the purchaser is the large-scale purchaser is based on a number ofitems purchased by the purchaser exceeding a threshold number over atime period.
 16. A non-transitory computer-readable storage mediumstoring instructions thereon, which, when executed by one or moreprocessors, cause one or more processors to perform operations forgenerating a user interface for selecting a user interface of anelectronic marketplace for presentation to a purchaser, the operationscomprising: receiving an indication that the purchaser has agreed topurchase a first item, the first item being sold by a first seller;receiving an indication that the purchaser has agreed to purchase asecond item, the second item being sold by a second seller; and based ona detection that the purchaser is a large-scale purchaser, performingthe selecting of the user interface, the user interface providing thepurchaser with an option to perform a first proposed action and a secondproposed action, the first proposed action corresponding to theagreement to purchase the first item and the second proposed actioncorresponding to the agreement to purchase the second item.
 17. Thenon-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein thefirst proposed action includes consolidating a payment associated withthe agreement to purchase the first item with a payment associated withthe agreement to purchase the second item.
 18. The non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium of claim 16, the operations furthercomprising determining that a deadline for opening a dispute with thefirst seller is imminent and the first proposed action includes openingthe dispute with the first seller before the deadline.
 19. Thenon-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein thefirst proposed action is further based on a tardiness of a shipping ofthe first item and a reputation of the first seller.
 20. Thenon-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, theoperations further comprising detecting that a deadline for taking anext action associated with the dispute is approaching, and wherein theuser interface is updated to include a third proposed action, the thirdproposed action including performing the next action before thedeadline.
 21. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium ofclaim 16, wherein the first proposed action includes contacting thefirst seller instead of opening a dispute based on a tardiness of ashipping of the first item or a reputation of the seller.